Nathan, 24, who began his five year Reaseheath Journey on our Level 3 Extended Diploma in Horticulture and progressed onto our BSc (Hons) Landscape Architecture, was awarded Best Young Designer Garden and Best Construction for a Young Designer Garden, along with a gold medal, in the prestigious RHS Young Designer of the Year category.

The Young Designer awards are open to entrants aged 28 and under and recognise the talent of next generation garden designers and landscapers.

Nathan’s pared back woodland design, built by Wright Landscapes, for whom he works as lead landscape architect, responds to a brief from a busy working client who wants to spend weekends in a forest atmosphere embracing all aspects of sustainable living.

The scheme features a forest cabin offering living space which includes a kitchen, outdoor and indoor showers, an electric bike rack with charging point, solar panels, rainwater recycling and a borehole pump. Outside are a fire pit cooking station, an outdoor dining area and vegetable planters.

Central to the design are Nathan’s own passion for nature and the outdoors and his keenness to use an existing environment to its full potential. Show judges were impressed with his use of renewable energy and sustainable materials and to his emphasis on nature conservation for both now and the future, achieved by working closely with Forestry England.